The Final Word

"Perhaps someone in this world would hear my cries
 and feel my pain...."
                       -Reyhaneh Jabbari-




"Khoda! Khoda!" ( Farsi for God! God!) Reyhaneh! Reyhaneh!"
 For as long as I live, I will never forget the agonizing and gut-wrenching cries of Shole Pakravan, as she received the painful news of her daughter's execution.
 I was quietly praying for Reyhaneh inside of the chapel at work during my break time.
It was 9 pm on a Friday evening in St. Louis, Missouri and approximately 6:30 am in Tehran, Iran. Dawn had just broken over Evin Prison and despite International outcry and a petition containing over 200,000 signatures, The Iranian killing machine hanged 26 year-old Reyhaneh Jabbari, an innocent martyr, for the crime of "self defense!"
No doubt, the final words of her daughter, were racing through Shole's mind at that agonizing moment,  "I love you..I wish I could have hugged you until I died...."
I had been in the middle of praying when I discovered this haunting video on my cell phone. I stopped for just a minute and I as I watched dear Shole in her agony, I wept and pleaded with God for His mercy.
I remembered the words of Reyhaneh, in one of her letters from prison, in which she cried out for someone to listen to her and be her voice

"Perhaps someone in this world would hear my cries and feel my pain..."

At that unforgettable moment in the prayer chapel at work, I truly connected with both Reyhaneh and Shole......I felt their pain..I was gripped by their suffering and agony...Indeed, I heard their cries and it is a moment that I will never forget for the rest of my life.

The day that this brutal and unforgiving regime hanged Reyhaneh and thrust a "sword of injustice" through her mother's heart, was only 11 days until her 27th birthday! For seven agonizing years Reyhaneh had suffered in prison for the stabbing death of Morteza Sarbandi, a former Iranian intelligence agent, who had lured her into his apartment to do some interior designing work and then tried to rape her.
From the age of 19 until her unjust death at the young age of 26, Reyhaneh had never experienced a normal adult life. "The world allowed me to live for 19 years.." Reyhaneh writes in her prison letter (Part 1)...I want them to know what happened to me at the age of 19 that has made me no longer fear death...."

For Reyhaneh, her life had stopped....her life had ended at 19..when she was thrust into the grave of Evin Prison. Yet inspite of her suffering, Reyhaneh cried out to the world through her prison letters which became her "voice" to anyone who would listen to her cause, her side of the story of what really happened.

      "With a hanging rope in front of my eyes..I want to tell you everything that I said in court..everything that I screamed  while I was brutally kicked by four forceful interrogators, who regarded themselves as almighty..perhaps someone in this world would hear my cries and feel my pain...."

For more than six months, I heard the cries and felt the pain of Reyhaneh. My Facebook page was filled with petitions and stories about her plight. I wrote a blog about her entitiled, "The crime of self defense," and pleaded with my listeners on my radio program to be a voice for Reyhaneh, save her life and sign the petition for her freedom. 
For one month before her execution, I paused from work at break time and went to the chapel and prayed for her. I was confident that God heard the cries of the oppressed and suffering and would deliver Reyhaneh.
It was only an hour after watching that agonizing video in the chapel that I received the tragic news on my cell phone that Reyhaneh had been executed. I paused from my work at the hospital and found a quiet place and went to my Facebook page. With tears streaming down my face, I wrote the following post to my followers:

"With sadness and brokenness, I have to report that our dear Reyhaneh was executed just a few minutes ago....I am truly broken and yet there is a part of me that is rejoicing because now Reyhaneh is finally safe at home in the arms of Jesus....Death no longer has power over her...The Iranian Regime has lost..they can no longer hurt her...
Jesus had the final word!
Reyhaneh we love you and we will miss you, but one day soon we will see you again at the great banquet table in heaven..This is a promise.

Jesus had the final word, not the cruel and barbaric Iranian Regime!  During his suffering for his Christian faith on the Island of Patmos, John had an incredible vision of Jesus that encouraged him in the midst of his dark trial. John fell down in worship as Jesus laid his right hand upon him:

"Fear not, I am the First and the Last and the living one. I died and behold I am alive forevermore and I have the keys of death and hades!"
                                         (Revelation 1:17-18)

This is a powerful and comforting claim from the one who conquered death, hell and the grave! Jesus is the sovereign Lord over life and death. He has the final word, which means that at our moment of death, we are safe and secure in his arms of love.

As I pondered this Scripture, I was comforted by the fact that Reyhaneh was finally free from the grave of her prison and had been ushered into the arms of a loving Savior.....

Jesus holds the keys of death and hades! He had the final word! The many cruel years of torture and injustice had finally came to an end for our dear Reyhaneh. There was a few moments of frustration and sadness for me that God had not spared her life and yet I realized that he had indeed delivered her and answered my prayers. It was just ten days until her birthday! For the past six years, Rehayneh had spent her birthday behind the bars of a dark and cruel prison. However this year on her 27th birthday, she would finally be free! 

On November 5, the world will pause and remember Reyhaneh by lighting a candle in her honor..I too will light a candle...


"Happy Birthday dear Reyhaneh..We will never forget your suffering and injustice..we will remember your bravery, beauty, patience and your hope for justice!



   

Breaking the Silence

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves....."
                      (Proverbs 31:8)




Sabah was only 12 years old when she heard about the first honor killing. A young Muslim girl had became pregnant and when her family found out, they were outraged. Her selfish act had brought shame to the family and the community. In retaliation, the mother tied her hands behind her back and sat on her chest, while her brother strangled her to death!
After reading this horrifying account, Sabah was shocked, "What is going on? This is not Islam! My religion is a religion of peace!"
 A few years later in 2004, Sabah was exposed to another honor killing, only this one hit way too close to home. She learned that the elder brother of one of her good friends had been murdered.
 Unable to keep silent, Sabah stopped researching and began speaking out!
I first met Sabah on Twitter and since then we have become good friends. I invited her to be a guest on my radio program, "The Cross in the Desert." when I learned she was doing a screening of the powerful documentary film "Honor Diaries."
Sabah is a British Muslim with a Pakistani background. Several years ago she came to the United States and is currently a student at a University studying Biology.
Yet Sabah is much more than just a student pursuing a degree at a University. She is a very open-minded, outspoken and courageous Muslim woman who is unafraid to "break the silence."
 When Sabah discovered other Muslim women were speaking out against honor killings and injustices committed against women in the "Honor Diaries," film, she realized that she had an obligation, a duty, to bring awareness to her own community.

While most non-Muslim students were shocked by the film, The Muslim community was not, instead they were outraged and offended. Sabah was called a "devil, an infidel" and was warned that showing this film could even cost her, her life!
Sabah confessed to me on my radio program that her emotions have been like a pendulum swing, "Did I do the right thing? Should I really be doing this?" The criticism and death threats have resulted in a great emotional toll on Sabah. At times she has felt lonely and depressed and wondered if she should continue. Yet despite the difficult challenges, Sabah has vowed to continue:

"I must speak up when I see injustices! I can't save the world, but maybe I can be like a ripple in the ocean. I will tell one person and they in turn will tell someone else...

Bringing awareness and education is the passion of Sabah's life. She is committed to making a difference in the lives of abused women in Muslim majority countries. Yet the challenges she faces is not limited to just the Muslim community. Sabah faces great challenges from her immediate family. While her father doesn't know about her activism, her mother does and is worried about her safety. In addition to that stress, Sabah had to hide her screening activities from her brother, since he goes to the same university that she does! 
During our interview, I asked Sabah how she felt about ISIS and she immediately denounced them as "monsters" and not Muslims.

"I wish the ground would swallow up these monsters and take them down to the lowest hell!"

One of the biggest challenges that Sabah faces is the ongoing stereotypes about Muslims that is largely created by the media. She hates the stereotype that "All Muslims are terrorists" and is saddened by the suggestion that her religion is guilty of oppressing women!

"True Muslims would not oppress women. They cannot do that because our Prophet Muhammad taught that we should treat women and children like petals of a flower...."

I have nothing but admiration and respect for Sabah. She is one of the most courageous Muslim women that I have ever met! Despite the numerous threats and the fear of her brother finding out, Sabah courageously continues her battle for the rights of abused Muslim women. For Sabah, "real Islam" is a peaceful religion. "There is no compulsion in religion, "Sabah proclaims, quoting from the Quran.
At the risk of her life, Sabah will continue to speak out and be that "ripple" in the ocean bringing education and awareness to everyone who is willing to listen. What Sabah is doing is taught by the Bible. To her Muslim community, she is bringing fear and shame, but to the God of the Bible, she is bringing honor and glory through her activism.
Proverbs 31:9 instructs us to, "Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. Ensure justice for those being crushed. Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless and see that they get justice!"
My prayer is that there will be more "Sabah's" who will speak up and not be silenced by fear. Sabah has broken the silence and as a result many lives will be saved by her courage and commitment!